Short cationic lipopeptides are amphiphilic molecules that exhibit antimicrobial activity mainly against Grampositives.
These compounds bind to bacterial membranes and disrupt their integrity. Here we examine the
structure-activity relation (SAR) of lysine-based lipopeptides, with a prospect to rationally design more active
compounds. The presented study aims to explain how antimicrobial activity of lipopeptides is affected by...

Since the time when first CASE (Computer-Aided Software Engineering) methods and tools were developed, little has been done in the area of automated creation of code. CASE tools support a software engineer in creation the system structure, in defining interfaces and relationships between software modules and, after the code has been written, in performing testing tasks on different levels of detail. Writing code is still the task...

The proceedings set LNCS 11727, 11728, 11729, 11730, and 11731 constitute the proceedings of the 28th International Conference on Artificial Neural Networks, ICANN 2019, held in Munich, Germany, in September 2019.
The total of 277 full papers and 43 short papers presented in these proceedings was carefully reviewed and selected from 494 submissions. They were organized in 5 volumes focusing on theoretical neural computation; deep...

The subject of human-hand versatility has been intensively investigated for many years. Emerging robotic constructions change continuously in order to mimic natural mechanisms as accurately as possible. Such an attitude is motivated by the demand for humanoid robots with sophisticated end effectors and highly biomimic prostheses. This paper provides wide analysis of more than 80 devices that have been created over the last 40 years....

The article presents the observed deviations from the time-temperature superposition principle of asphalt concretes, tested in the bending beam creep test at low temperatures for a long time of loading. In almost all tested asphalt concretes, deviations appeared after 500 s of loading at the temperature of -10 C. Some types of bitumen presented deviations at other temperatures – usually the harder the grade of the bitumen, the...

When transport is analysed for its safe delivery the focus is mainly on assessing the safety of roads and the risk of undesired events. These include road accidents, an occurrence which is relatively rare and random. Randomness means that accidents depend on several factors which are partly deterministic (can be controlled) and partly stochastic (random and unpredictable). The set of crash contributing factors can be classified...

Analysis of Gdańsk’s tram network statistics shows that incidents are quite frequent (about 650 within 5 years) and mostly involve collisions and crashes. As well as reducing the tram systems’ efficiency and reliability, incidents have a nega-tive effect on road safety. As Polish cities extend their tram networks, they must also ensure that their existing networks are safe. This is to be achieved by conducting safety assessments....

Based on the equivalent single-layer linear theory for laminated shells, free and forced vibrations of thin cylindrical sandwich panels with magnetorheological core are studied. Five variants of available magnetorheological elastomers differing in their composition and physical properties are considered for smart viscoelastic core. Coupled differential equations in terms of displacements based on the generalized kinematic hypotheses...

Concrete machine foundations are structures that transfer loads from machines in operation to the ground. The design of such foundations requires a careful analysis of the static and dynamic effects caused by machine exploitation. There are also other substantial differences between ordinary concrete foundations and machine foundations, of which the main one is that machine foundations are separated from the building structure....

The purpose of the study is to assess whether the inclusion of investments in gold and/or crude oil improves an investment portfolio consisting of shares of enterprises included in the WIG20 index (traditional invest-ments). All possible combinations of investment portfolios with minimal risk and maximum efficiency were tested. The portfolios were determined based on Markowitz’s portfolio theory. All results were compared...

We demonstrate the idea of squat-type defect measurement in the rail and the concept of tracking of the defect development using the techniques of image acquisition and image processing as well as the methods of metric spaces. We introduce the concepts of a set diameter δ(A) and the metric ρ1, which come from the properties of plane figures, to compare and to observe the development of the defects. We characterize the feasibility...

The paper analyses a case study on the structural assessment of warehouse building partially damaged by fire caused by external source (fire of lorries close to the building). The authors focus on the site investigations and laboratory test results prior to assessing actual condition of the structural elements. Both strengthening concept and repair procedure of a steel column are addressed here. A short literature survey in the...

The paper presents the results of research on assessing the accuracy of angular position
measurement relative to the sea horizon using a camera mounted on an unmanned bathymetric
surveying vehicle of the Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) or Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) type.
The first part of the article presents the essence of the problem. The rules of taking the angular
position of the vehicle into account in bathymetric surveys...

Deterioration of water quality is a major problem world widely according to many international non-governmental organizations (NGO). As one of the European Union (EU) countries, Bulgaria is also obliged by EU legislation to maintain best practices in assessing surface water quality and the efficiency of wastewater treatment processes. For these reasons studies were undertaken to utilize ecotoxicological (Microtox®, Phytotoxkit...

The study presents evaluating the effectiveness of the hearing aid fitting process in the short-term
use (7 days). The evaluation method consists of a survey based on the APHAB (Abbreviated Profile
of Hearing Aid Benefit) questionnaire. Additional criteria such as a degree of hearing loss, number of
hours and days of hearing aid use as well as the user’s experience were also taken into consideration. The
outcomes of the benefit...

There are numerous threats to the natural environment that pose a significant risk both to the environment and to human health, including car tires. Thus, there is a need to determine the impact of the life cycle of car tires on the environment, starting with the processes of raw materials acquisition, production, and ending with end-of-life management. Therefore, the authors of this study chose to do research on passenger car...

This paper explores the methodology to assess the maturity of small
enterprise of building masonry sector to implement integrated approach of Lean
Six Sigma. For this purpose survey data from senior managers were used.
Quantitative method of the case organization’s needs and capabilities in the
scope of Lean Six Sigma project implementation was applied. The value of
maturity indicator for Lean Six Sigma projects dedicated to the...

he performance of bathymetric measurements by traditional methods (using manned vessels) in ultra-shallow waters, i.e., lakes, rivers, and sea beaches with a depth of less than 1 m, is often difficult or, in many cases, impossible due to problems related to safe vessel maneuvering. For this reason, the use of shallow draft hydrographic Unmanned Surface Vessels (USV) appears to provide a promising alternative method for performing...

Bionanocellulose (BNC) is a clear polymer produced by the bacterium Gluconacetobacter xylinus. In our current study, “Research on the use of bacterial nanocellulose (BNC) in regenerative medicine as a function of the biological implants in cardiac and vascular surgery”, we carried out material analysis, biochemical analysis, in vitro tests and in vivo animal model testing. In stage 1 of the project, we carried out physical and...

Thermal stresses are leading factors that influence low-temperature cracking behavior of asphalt pavements. During winter, when the temperature drops to significantly low values, tensile thermal stresses develop as a result of pavement contraction. Creep test methods can be suitable for the assessment of low-temperature properties of asphalt mixtures. To evaluate the influence of creep test methods on the obtained low-temperature...

Dual-band operation is an important feature of antennas to be applied in modern communication systems. Although high gain of radiators is rarely of concern in urban areas with densely located broadcasting stations, it becomes crucial for systems operating in more remote environments. In this work, a dual-band antenna with enhanced bandwidth is proposed. The structure consists of a driven element in the form of an asymmetrical radiator/slot...

Radiolocation systems for aviation based on Multi-Lateration (MLAT) typically use a set of synchronised ground sensors to receive radio signals broadcast by onboard transmitters. In most cases, the sensor synchronisation in Wide Area Multi-Lateration Systems (WAM) is provided by Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers. However, in the case of synchronisation failure, there is still a possibility to estimate the coordinates...

This paper presents the results of research conducted to develop an automated system
capable of determining parameters for horizontal curves. The system presented in this article could
calculate the actual course of a road by means of a two-stage positioning of recorded points along the
road. In the first stage, measurements were taken with a Real-Time Network (RTN) receiver installed
in a research vehicle. In the second stage,...

An approach to detection of events occurring in road traffic using autoencoders is presented. Extensions of existing algorithms of acoustic road events detection employing Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients combined with classifiers based on k nearest neighbors, Support Vector Machines, and random forests are used. In our research, the acoustic signal gathered from the microphone placed near the road is split into frames and converted...

Problems regarding the security of maritime infrastructure, especially harbours and offshore infrastructure, are currently a very hot topic. Due to these problems, there are some research projects in which the main goal is to decrease the gap and improve the methods of observation in the chosen area, for both in-air and underwater areas. The main goal of the paper is to show a new complex system for improving the security of the...

Transportation systems are designed and used so as to effectively and safely relocate people, goods and services. Despite this there are numerous hazards that disrupt or damage these systems. Risks such as extreme weather conditions, terrorist threats, landsliders or earthquakes are difficult to predict, manage and mitigate. One of the hazards for transportation systems are accidents, and their impact on the transport functioning...